Damian is 100% tired of both the growing headache and the damn stupid shadows making fun of all of them. The small child goes feral as soon as the "okay maybe we can figh--" leaves Dick's mouth.
Like a cat, he leaps from the place he's standing right up and over to the first shadow. He kicks his leg out and tries to roundhouses the first one in the neck.
He, like, wants to fight, but Dick said to make an opening, so... he guesses he is just going to keep pushing forward to make them a little path.]
[ dick has a headache and it is only 50% due to the screaming shadows hounding them. he'll ... stick to pushing or shoving past them and going? he'll hit if necessary but it does not seem necessary. he is trying not to lose track of damian or steph, here, this is horrible. can we please get to the hall. ]
[It seems that, in this case, violence isn't the answer. Dick can push past the crowd with a bit of effort, and make his way past the ring that has formed around the trio. But when Damian tries to roundhouse one of the shadows in the neck? He will find himself losing his balance completely; one moment he's on his feet, the next he's face down on the ground, eating shit.
If it's even possible, the shadows laugh and cackle with more intensity. Their eyes turn in Damian's direction, pointing and booing at him. Among the shouts and jeers, he will hear:]
"Aw, look at him! Poor little Dami is throwing a tantrum!"
"Are you gonna go cry to your mommy, baby?"
"Pffft, like his mom even wants him! No one wants him!"
[Hm. Maybe they should just keep pushing. It's clear the shadows will not attack them physically, at least.]
[ can steph please just get a normal break-in. let her just punch something, she begs you.
but hm, this seems to be... something. but also acknowledging what is happening seems like a bad move at the moment, so steph is just going to pause near damian until he's back up; she knows offering to help him up is just going to get on his nerves. but once he is, she will follow behind dick. ]
[He's not sure what he's more angry about, being knocked down, or being kicked while he's down there. His eyes blaze when he whips around again. It doesn't even take him two seconds to get back to his feet with his fists balled.]
Silence!
[He's half a millisecond away from pulling out his dagger and going to town, it working or not be damned. Throwing his arms up, he charges after Dick. FINE. HE WILL JUST SHOVE EVERYONE OUT OF THE WAY.]
[ hm, suddenly the shadows make more sense. dick stops pushing his way through when Damian falls, and he absolutely would have helped him up if he'd needed it, ego be damned, but he does not so once he's sure they're both following him off they go again, shoving their way through ... shadows pointing out their insecurities. Bad. ]
Ignore them. They're not real, nothing in this place is. If it's anything like Purple-- this is Winter's "residue" combining with ours. We just have to make our way through it.
[Luckily for them, as long as they don't try to attack the shadows again, they will be able to push their way past them and into the hallway. More shadowy figures line the walls, blocking the lockers and the classroom doors. Furthermore, they won't be able to make it past the first two classroom doors. In fact, they won't be able to approach them at all. A portable stage has appeared in the middle of the hallway, a large TV screen is attached to the stage along with two speakers. There is text displayed on the screen, while music blasts from the speakers. There are three podiums by the left side of the hallway, angled to face the stage at a bit of an angle. Each podium has a small screen on the front. Each screen reads:]
SCORE: 0
[As the group approaches, confetti and glitter rain down on them. The shadowy figures that line the hallway start to clap and stomp their feet rhythmically. The next time they blink, they will notice there are two individuals on the stage now. Though they both wear cartoonishly big red and cyan 3D glasses, and their grins are stretched too wide to be comfortable, the trio will have no trouble making sense of their features. One is an older man Damian will find very familiar, and the other is a young man Steph has seen way too much of recently. Oh, boy.
The younger man holds a microphone in his hand, making a grand sweeping gestures at the trio, right before he begins to speak.]
"Gooooooooood evening, Camp Gatonina! We are your hosts, Goro Akechi—"
[The older man speaks:]
"—and Hannibal Lecter!"
[Together, they say:]
"And we welcome you to another episode of—"
[Suddenly, the shadowy figures chant. Beside them, the group will notice another man working a camera, filming the whole affair.]
"Reasons! You! Deserve! To! Die!"
[The figures hoot and cheer, while their "hosts" stare at the group expectantly. Well, what now?]
[What is with this lost, sassy stage? This is the hallway, do you have a pass?]
Lecter!
[He starts to charge forward, but probably Dick will grab him by the collar again, and if not, Dick and Steph will be doing it so they can get this humiliation over with.]
[ dick hates absolutely everything about this! including the fact that he keeps having to hold damian back from fighting literally everything they come across, which is a mood, but what is he? superboy early years? GOD. anyway, yeah, he grabbed his collar. ]
Damian, what did I just say? [ not that he's anymore excited to go up on that stage (sirs, this is a school) or to be filmed by that cameraman again than he is, but god. ] They're not real. This place is basing itself off of memories. Let's just... get through it and get what we came here for.
[ he does not entirely remember what that is, but anyway, he'll drag him along to the podiums, where steph is also going probably, although... he will mutter to them both: ]
If we can make a break for it, we run.
[ he really does not want to play this game, he can play it on his own every day, thank you. ]
The grins on Akechi, Hannibal and Maou's mouths are still stretched too wide to be comfortable. The expression on their faces is completely unnatural, like they have no choice but to grin and act as manic as possible. Even though a 10-year-old child just tried to throttle him, Hannibal shows no signs of minding it or even noticing it. Instead, he holds the microphone up to his mouth as the trio takes their place at the podiums and says:]
"Let's give it up for our wonderful contestants!"
[One by one, a spotlight shines down on each member of the trio.]
"Stephanie Brown, Richard Grayson, and Damian— Wait? Is it Wayne? Al Ghul? Whatever! He will never live up to either of those names, anyway!"
[With that, the words displayed on the TV screen will change. The screen will now read:]
ROUND 1 WHY I WILL NEVER BE GOOD ENOUGH
[The shadowy figures cheer, still clapping and stomping their feet. Akechi will speak next:]
"The rules are simple! There are four rounds to this game. Each round you win will net you a prize. But if you lose... Well, aren't you always losing anyway? You should know what to expect." [The crowd laughs, and he continues.] "The theme of this round is why I will never be good enough! Score six points between the three of you, and you win. Fail to score enough points after seven questions, and you lose. Easy enough, right? Papika-san, why don't you show our contestants the prize for this round?"
[One of the shadowy figures standing in front of the classroom doors morphs. The next time they blink, a young girl stands in their place. Her face is also stuck in a permanent grin, her eyes alight with manic energy. She gestures at the two classroom doors, practically bouncing with excitement. Now that the group is here, they will notice there is a sheet of paper taped to each door. Something seems to be written on it.]
"If they win, they get to visit our friends from Whole Ass and Shibuya! Yaaaaaay!"
"Thank you, Papika-san! Very well, then our first question is... Is Stephanie Brown an incorrigible fuck up? Haha, it seems like this one is a freebie. Let's hear your answers!"
[The TV screen will change to display the question. There is a buzzer on each podium, and they will have to press it before offering their answer. Seems like it's time for the game show to begin.]
[ she's momentarily distracted by the appearance of papika, and she glances at damian. that only lasts for a few seconds though, because then the question gets asked.
steph? is so offended? she doesn't wait to see what the others do, and instead just slams her hand on the buzzer. ]
[PLEASE, JUST LET HIM FIGHT HANNIBAL LECTER? IT'S ALL HE WANTED TO DO IN ROBOWEST TO END THE GAME, AND HE WAS DENIED EVERY TIME.
As expected, he struggles against Dick's hold, but immediately stops when Papika appears. NO! His f-- HIS ROOMMATE. He stares, feeling the abject horror without showing it. Absolutely not!
This completely ruins the delivery of the fact the only thing anyone can see of him over the podium is his eyes and his forehead.
Damn this stupid game already. He glares at Steph, despite the fact he would probably do the same thing (and will when it's his turn?) in his case. He smacks his own buzzer after her.]
[The shadows immediately laughs when Dick offers his answer, pointing and hollering at him. Even Papika covers her mouth, muffling her laughter as she shakes her head. Such a funny joke.]
"Hm? What does Batman have to do with anything? Stephanie Brown is, objectively, a fuck-up! A screw-up! She will never, ever amount to anything. So let's give up for Damian Wayne! He scored one point for his team! You really had me worried, phew."
[The score on Damian's podium changes to 1.
Hannibal speaks next:]
"Now, onto round two. The question for this round is... Is Damian Wayne a good son? Oh, this is another easy one! What is your answer?"
[Once again, the TV screen changes to display the question.]
If you're trying to hurt my feelings you're doing a terrible job at it.
[ she is just very mad now, it's fine.
but hm. she would love to be an asshole to damian because he was an asshole to her, but this question is mean and she can't bully him for it because he's ten. terrible. she hits the buzzer. ]
.... yes.
[ she isn't going to score a single point in this game ]
[Both of his hands ball into fists at the question. That's so shitty... Right where it hurts--being a bad son. And scoring a point just proves what he already assumed from the start: they're going to have to be fucking assholes in order to get points at all.
Which would be easy for him if he WERE WITH LITERALLY ANY OTHER OF THE PEOPLE HERE, HE THINKS?
He turns to Stephanie, but she almost immediately betrays him and their goal. He gawks at her.] Brown, [he hisses under his breath desperately.
[ he doesn't WANT to say it, and there's a twist to his mouth as he looks at damian and stephanie both in turn. he doesn't buzz in quite yet. ]
Look-- none of these answers are what we really think. We're just answering to get things moving. I don't think any of us want to go through all six questions.
[ because if this is the starting line... still, he takes in a breath and steels himself before buzzing-- ]
......... no.
[ it is the most reluctant thing he has ever done, and he's absolutely glaring at hannibal when he says it. hey did anyone ever notice that rhymes with cannibal. weird coincidence probably. ]
[The crowd boos and hisses when Steph offers her answer. Luckily for the group, Dick saves the day! A ding, ding, ding rings from the speakers, and the crowd cheers. However, Hannibal, Akechi and Papika shake their heads. Dick's score changes to 1.]
"Miss Brown, are you trying at all? No wonder your employer was eager to get rid of you. Why would he ever expect anything different from a fuck up like you...? But that's right! Damian Wayne is not a good son! The truth spoken from the lips of the golden son himself! He would know, after all."
[The crowd cheers. The clapping and stomping continues. Akechi holds the microphone to his mouth next.]
"Onto the next round! Ooooh, this one is good. Is Dick Grayson destined to alienate everyone around him? Your answers, please!"
but also she knows, technically, that they are right and the only way for them to “win” is by being assholes. steph glares at akechi, before turning her attention to the other two. ]
[Can't believe Dick thinks he's a bad son. 😔 His life is over.
He wants to tell Dick to keep telling himself that in regards to none of them thinking some of this............but as bad as it looks (and feels) right now, he keeps his mouth shut.]
What is the meaning of this idiotic game...? Is all of this from Winter, or a warped version of who Winter is?
[ stop he DOESN'T!!! also what the fuck, rude. stupid question. dick is frowning, though not at Steph let them just get points for the love of god, let them out, but he concentrates on answering first; ]
If it's anything like PH, it's warped memories. Let's just... get through this. [ anyway he buzzes!! ] Yes.
[SOMETIMES... HIGH SCHOOL IS JUST LIKE THIS. You will learn one day, Damian. After offering their answers, though, Stephanie's scoreboard changes to 1 and Dick's changes to 2.]
"Bravo! That's right, Dick Grayson is destined to alienate everyone around him! That's just how it is in the family, isn't it? You've finally learned the name of the game."
[The shadows laugh and cheer, spittle flying from the multitude of mouths covering their bodies. Gross. However, the crowd falls silent once the music blasting from the speakers is replaced by something else. It's the sound of a power drill. On the TV screen, the trio will see an image replace the white text. It's a blurry, low quality photograph. Almost like a candid shot taken from a bad angle. But despite all of these details, they will still know this is a picture of a young girl in a hospital bed, her body heavily injured while an ECG flatlines next to her.]
"Whose fault is it? Your options are A, Batman's fault. B, Black Mask's fault. C, Stephanie Brown's fault. And D, no one's fault. Choose your answer carefully!"
it’s the noise that gets her attention first, and she already has a feeling she knows what it’s going to be before she sees it and— yeah. her expression changes from shock, to anger, to a sort of... pained acceptance before she presses the buzzer. ]
... C.
[ that one is easy, but she doesn’t look at either damian or dick. ]
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well, the headache isn't helping any. stephanie holds onto her head with her free hand, but at least she got a confirmation. ]
We can touch them. We could maybe try to push through and see if we can get to the hall?
[ this was a terrible time to not bring her grappling hook but it's fine ]
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Damian is 100% tired of both the growing headache and the damn stupid shadows making fun of all of them. The small child goes feral as soon as the "okay maybe we can figh--" leaves Dick's mouth.
Like a cat, he leaps from the place he's standing right up and over to the first shadow. He kicks his leg out and tries to roundhouses the first one in the neck.
He, like, wants to fight, but Dick said to make an opening, so... he guesses he is just going to keep pushing forward to make them a little path.]
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... Apparently, we're going. Come on.
[ dick has a headache and it is only 50% due to the screaming shadows hounding them. he'll ... stick to pushing or shoving past them and going? he'll hit if necessary but it does not seem necessary. he is trying not to lose track of damian or steph, here, this is horrible. can we please get to the hall. ]
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If it's even possible, the shadows laugh and cackle with more intensity. Their eyes turn in Damian's direction, pointing and booing at him. Among the shouts and jeers, he will hear:]
"Aw, look at him! Poor little Dami is throwing a tantrum!"
"Are you gonna go cry to your mommy, baby?"
"Pffft, like his mom even wants him! No one wants him!"
[Hm. Maybe they should just keep pushing. It's clear the shadows will not attack them physically, at least.]
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but hm, this seems to be... something. but also acknowledging what is happening seems like a bad move at the moment, so steph is just going to pause near damian until he's back up; she knows offering to help him up is just going to get on his nerves. but once he is, she will follow behind dick. ]
This is stupid.
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Silence!
[He's half a millisecond away from pulling out his dagger and going to town, it working or not be damned. Throwing his arms up, he charges after Dick. FINE. HE WILL JUST SHOVE EVERYONE OUT OF THE WAY.]
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Ignore them. They're not real, nothing in this place is. If it's anything like Purple-- this is Winter's "residue" combining with ours. We just have to make our way through it.
[ can they. please have made their way through ]
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SCORE: 0
[As the group approaches, confetti and glitter rain down on them. The shadowy figures that line the hallway start to clap and stomp their feet rhythmically. The next time they blink, they will notice there are two individuals on the stage now. Though they both wear cartoonishly big red and cyan 3D glasses, and their grins are stretched too wide to be comfortable, the trio will have no trouble making sense of their features. One is an older man Damian will find very familiar, and the other is a young man Steph has seen way too much of recently. Oh, boy.
The younger man holds a microphone in his hand, making a grand sweeping gestures at the trio, right before he begins to speak.]
"Gooooooooood evening, Camp Gatonina! We are your hosts, Goro Akechi—"
[The older man speaks:]
"—and Hannibal Lecter!"
[Together, they say:]
"And we welcome you to another episode of—"
[Suddenly, the shadowy figures chant. Beside them, the group will notice another man working a camera, filming the whole affair.]
"Reasons! You! Deserve! To! Die!"
[The figures hoot and cheer, while their "hosts" stare at the group expectantly. Well, what now?]
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[ she is so fucking tired
but she glances at the two other men... well, they're most likely from dick's and damian's games then. ]
I'm guessing we won't be able to leave unless we play along, huh?
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Lecter!
[He starts to charge forward, but probably Dick will grab him by the collar again, and if not, Dick and Steph will be doing it so they can get this humiliation over with.]
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Damian, what did I just say? [ not that he's anymore excited to go up on that stage (sirs, this is a school) or to be filmed by that cameraman again than he is, but god. ] They're not real. This place is basing itself off of memories. Let's just... get through it and get what we came here for.
[ he does not entirely remember what that is, but anyway, he'll drag him along to the podiums, where steph is also going probably, although... he will mutter to them both: ]
If we can make a break for it, we run.
[ he really does not want to play this game, he can play it on his own every day, thank you. ]
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The grins on Akechi, Hannibal and Maou's mouths are still stretched too wide to be comfortable. The expression on their faces is completely unnatural, like they have no choice but to grin and act as manic as possible. Even though a 10-year-old child just tried to throttle him, Hannibal shows no signs of minding it or even noticing it. Instead, he holds the microphone up to his mouth as the trio takes their place at the podiums and says:]
"Let's give it up for our wonderful contestants!"
[One by one, a spotlight shines down on each member of the trio.]
"Stephanie Brown, Richard Grayson, and Damian— Wait? Is it Wayne? Al Ghul? Whatever! He will never live up to either of those names, anyway!"
[With that, the words displayed on the TV screen will change. The screen will now read:]
ROUND 1
WHY I WILL NEVER BE GOOD ENOUGH
[The shadowy figures cheer, still clapping and stomping their feet. Akechi will speak next:]
"The rules are simple! There are four rounds to this game. Each round you win will net you a prize. But if you lose... Well, aren't you always losing anyway? You should know what to expect." [The crowd laughs, and he continues.] "The theme of this round is why I will never be good enough! Score six points between the three of you, and you win. Fail to score enough points after seven questions, and you lose. Easy enough, right? Papika-san, why don't you show our contestants the prize for this round?"
[One of the shadowy figures standing in front of the classroom doors morphs. The next time they blink, a young girl stands in their place. Her face is also stuck in a permanent grin, her eyes alight with manic energy. She gestures at the two classroom doors, practically bouncing with excitement. Now that the group is here, they will notice there is a sheet of paper taped to each door. Something seems to be written on it.]
"If they win, they get to visit our friends from Whole Ass and Shibuya! Yaaaaaay!"
"Thank you, Papika-san! Very well, then our first question is... Is Stephanie Brown an incorrigible fuck up? Haha, it seems like this one is a freebie. Let's hear your answers!"
[The TV screen will change to display the question. There is a buzzer on each podium, and they will have to press it before offering their answer. Seems like it's time for the game show to begin.]
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steph? is so offended? she doesn't wait to see what the others do, and instead just slams her hand on the buzzer. ]
No!
[ FUCK YOU ]
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As expected, he struggles against Dick's hold, but immediately stops when Papika appears. NO! His f-- HIS ROOMMATE. He stares, feeling the abject horror without showing it. Absolutely not!
This completely ruins the delivery of the fact the only thing anyone can see of him over the podium is his eyes and his forehead.
Damn this stupid game already. He glares at Steph, despite the fact he would probably do the same thing (and will when it's his turn?) in his case. He smacks his own buzzer after her.]
Yes!
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Guys...
[ they're going to die here. he sighs and stops facepalming long enough to hit his buzzer ]
Let me guess, "Batman thinks so"?
[ he's so dry right now. ]
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"Hm? What does Batman have to do with anything? Stephanie Brown is, objectively, a fuck-up! A screw-up! She will never, ever amount to anything. So let's give up for Damian Wayne! He scored one point for his team! You really had me worried, phew."
[The score on Damian's podium changes to 1.
Hannibal speaks next:]
"Now, onto round two. The question for this round is... Is Damian Wayne a good son? Oh, this is another easy one! What is your answer?"
[Once again, the TV screen changes to display the question.]
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[ she is just very mad now, it's fine.
but hm. she would love to be an asshole to damian because he was an asshole to her, but this question is mean and she can't bully him for it because he's ten. terrible. she hits the buzzer. ]
.... yes.
[ she isn't going to score a single point in this game ]
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Which would be easy for him if he WERE WITH LITERALLY ANY OTHER OF THE PEOPLE HERE, HE THINKS?
He turns to Stephanie, but she almost immediately betrays him and their goal. He gawks at her.] Brown, [he hisses under his breath desperately.
VERY QUICKLY, HE TURNS TO DICK PLEADINGLY.]
Just say it!
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Look-- none of these answers are what we really think. We're just answering to get things moving. I don't think any of us want to go through all six questions.
[ because if this is the starting line... still, he takes in a breath and steels himself before buzzing-- ]
......... no.
[ it is the most reluctant thing he has ever done, and he's absolutely glaring at hannibal when he says it. hey did anyone ever notice that rhymes with cannibal. weird coincidence probably. ]
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"Miss Brown, are you trying at all? No wonder your employer was eager to get rid of you. Why would he ever expect anything different from a fuck up like you...? But that's right! Damian Wayne is not a good son! The truth spoken from the lips of the golden son himself! He would know, after all."
[The crowd cheers. The clapping and stomping continues. Akechi holds the microphone to his mouth next.]
"Onto the next round! Ooooh, this one is good. Is Dick Grayson destined to alienate everyone around him? Your answers, please!"
[The question appears on the TV screen.]
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[ she hates this so much.
but also she knows, technically, that they are right and the only way for them to “win” is by being assholes. steph glares at akechi, before turning her attention to the other two. ]
Sorry, Dick. [ she hits the buzzer. ] Yes.
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He wants to tell Dick to keep telling himself that in regards to none of them thinking some of this............but as bad as it looks (and feels) right now, he keeps his mouth shut.]
What is the meaning of this idiotic game...? Is all of this from Winter, or a warped version of who Winter is?
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If it's anything like PH, it's warped memories. Let's just... get through this. [ anyway he buzzes!! ] Yes.
[ this sucks. ]
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"Bravo! That's right, Dick Grayson is destined to alienate everyone around him! That's just how it is in the family, isn't it? You've finally learned the name of the game."
[The shadows laugh and cheer, spittle flying from the multitude of mouths covering their bodies. Gross. However, the crowd falls silent once the music blasting from the speakers is replaced by something else. It's the sound of a power drill. On the TV screen, the trio will see an image replace the white text. It's a blurry, low quality photograph. Almost like a candid shot taken from a bad angle. But despite all of these details, they will still know this is a picture of a young girl in a hospital bed, her body heavily injured while an ECG flatlines next to her.]
"Whose fault is it? Your options are A, Batman's fault. B, Black Mask's fault. C, Stephanie Brown's fault. And D, no one's fault. Choose your answer carefully!"
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it’s the noise that gets her attention first, and she already has a feeling she knows what it’s going to be before she sees it and— yeah. her expression changes from shock, to anger, to a sort of... pained acceptance before she presses the buzzer. ]
... C.
[ that one is easy, but she doesn’t look at either damian or dick. ]
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